Nike Basketball’s new KD13 flips the script on double-stacked Zoom Air

Whether you’re pounding the hardwood floor of your local gym or hooping outdoors on the blacktop of the playground court, you want a shoe that gives you back as much as you put into your game.

Enter the Nike KD13, the latest iteration of Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant’s signature shoe.

The newest KD release continues the line’s use of a full-length Zoom strobel (a structure and support layer that sits between the midsole and the sockliner), which was first seen in the KD12. 

But this time, Nike creative designers have upped the ante as well as the cushioning. Where its predecessor had double-stacked Zoom in the heel of the shoe, the KD13 features a secondary, kidney-shaped Zoom unit in the forefoot under the full-length Zoom Air bag, in a move to increase responsiveness and movement off the ball of the foot.

The primary goal for Nike designers was to increase the shoe’s energy return: the more energy hoopers put in, the more they get out, much like the mechanics of a spring.

But the launch of the newest KD silhouette isn’t just about what’s under the hood. The KD13 features a lightweight upper and the first release, a Black/White colorway, boasts a speckled grey-and-white midsole and laces which carry pops of blue that match the shoe’s Zoom unit. 

In a design cue throwback to the KD12, the Swooshes on both sides of the shoe look as though they dip into the midsole and the predominantly black upper, made from ripstop fabrics, will look just as good on the street as it does on the court.

Forthcoming colorways include a ‘Home Team’ look featuring the black, grey and white of the Nets’ uniform color scheme as well as an outsole reminiscent of colorful Coogi sweaters worn by the New York borough’s favorite son, the Notorious B.I.G. Hoopers can also expect Nike’s iconic ‘Bred’ color combination adorning a KD13 releasing later this summer.

The ‘Black/White’ KD13 launches on 4/17 at Finish Line in Men’s and Kids’ sizing.